Atlanta Falcons Vault: 2002 NFC Wild Card Game
A 9-6-1 team with a 22-year-old Michael Vick at quarterback, were not supposed to walk out as the victors on January 4th, 2003. Just on the surface, they were supposed to walk into the frozen tundra, receive a humbling beating at the hands of the Brett Favre and Ahman Green-led Green Bay Packers, and head back to Atlanta being proud that they at least made the playoffs.
Never mind that the team walked into Green Bay to kick off the 2002 season, gave the talented Packers team a run for their money, and ended up with a 37-34 overtime defeat that in actuality gave this young Falcons team a jolt of confidence.
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Yet, with a Green Bay Packers team that up until the 2002 Wild Card matchup, was 13-0 all-time in home playoff games in the state of Wisconsin, this young Falcons team was SUPPOSED to have their 2002 playoff run end right there.
Somehow, then-head coach Dan Reeves and his Atlanta Falcons lost that memo in the mail.
There’s a saying that states that the little things matter. For this occasion, the small things added up in favor of the Atlanta Falcons prior to the game: The Packers were without starter Darren Sharper, who at that point was a two-time Pro Bowler and earned second-team All-Pro for the first time in 2002, Atlanta didn’t have to deal with extreme winter temperatures as the kickoff temperature was only 31 degrees, plus the Packers suffered a 42-17 loss to the New York Jets one week prior, which cost the Packers a first-round bye. So the psyche of the team may have been altered some heading into the Wild Card game.
However, if you recall the Vick magic in 2002, the then-second year QB utilized that season to jumpstart the legendary moments of his career including this particular play:
On this particular day, Vick didn’t have the outstanding numbers as he only passed for 117 yards and a TD and added 64 yards on the ground. The duo of RBs Warrick Dunn and TJ Duckett totaled 109 yards but the story of the day really was the Falcons defense that forced five turnovers including two Brett Favre interceptions and a blocked punt in the first quarter that gave the Falcons a 14-0 lead with a little over six minutes remaining in the quarter.
As the game rolled along, the hunger of the Falcons was on display even more and at one point, this young Falcons bunch was up 24-0 heading into halftime with the Packers looking stunned, and on their way to an eventual 27-7 stunner.
It’s only irony that the Falcons were doing this against Brett Favre. Who, of course, was drafted by Atlanta in 1991. Some call it irony, others may prefer to utilize “poetic justice”. Either way, it was amazing that for four quarters, a team with a 22-year old quarterback in his second year in the league, a 9-6-1 record, in one of the most historic venues in sports period, proved to be the better team on the field.
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Defeating large odds against them and constructing one of the biggest playoff upsets in recent seasons.